Jeremiyah Love, the first-round, No. 3 overall pick, is NOT the starting running back for the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1. That honor goes to free-agent pickup Tyler Allgeier, and if you were banking on Love being the bell cow, this news just hit different.
The Cardinals’ Shocking RB1 Reveal
Tyler Drake over at AZSports broke the news on Twitter/X: the first official depth chart for the Cards’ Week 1 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers has Allgeier listed as RB1. Think about that for a second. We’re talking about Love, the guy who’s making the most guaranteed money of any running back in NFL history as a No. 3 overall pick! Meanwhile, Allgeier spent most of his NFL career as a backup with the Atlanta Falcons before this free-agent pickup. You can’t tell me that isn’t wild.
What This Means for Jeremiyah Love’s Season
Look, Love was slotted into the RB2 role during the preseason and offseason, so maybe it’s not a complete shock. But still, a highly drafted player at a position like running back not winning the starting job? That’s just not what you expect. This isn’t just about Week 1, either. This depth chart makes it clear the Cardinals are seriously planning to utilize Allgeier in this offense. Whether he’s the lead back or part of a committee with Love, it means Love isn’t the bell cow they drafted him to be. Not yet, anyway. Even if Love still sees plenty of work in Week 1, which is still a bit up in the air, his status as *the* guy running the show is definitely in question. This first depth chart is flat-out not a good look for Love.
The Cardinals might be in a rebuilding year for 2026, and a poor record might not be a huge surprise, but their offense, with guys like Trey McBride at tight end and wide receivers Marvin Harrison Jr. and Michael Wilson, was supposed to be exciting. Now, with this running back dynamic, the Week 1 game against the Chargers just got a whole lot more interesting for how this backfield is going to shake out. Will Love eventually take over? Or is this the start of a long-term committee for a team trying to find its identity? We’ll see how it plays out.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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